Mandi: Indian Institute of Technology Mandi welcomed the new B.Tech. batch of 2020 during a virtual orientation event. 330 students from different parts of the country joined the batch of 2020 – 2024, out of which 68 are girls and 262 are boys as compared to 53 girls and 209 boys last year.
Welcoming the new batch of students, Prof. Ajit K. Chaturvedi, Director, IIT Mandi, said, “The unique curriculum of IIT Mandi includes courses like reverse engineering and Interactive Socio-Technical Practicum (ISTP) which help students to be empathetic towards societal problems and learn to provide engineering solutions. Centers like IIT Mandi Catalyst nurture students to grow up in an entrepreneurial ecosystem.”
The Institute introduced the students to a special 5 Week Induction Programme (5WIP) which the Institute is organising in phases this year due to the pandemic. The first phase of the induction programme started today, 23rd November 2020.
The 5WIP is a unique fully faculty mentored induction programme which aims to provide training to the new students to help them in the transition from school to college, to improve their respective skills and proficiency, and to appreciate the significance of engineering’s societal connect. The first phase of this programme will include introductory sessions on English and communication, exploring engineering, soft skills and computer proficiency.
The next phase of 5WIP will be organised once the students return to the campus. The 5WIP treats all students as unique individuals with their specific strengths and weaknesses. It gives all the students a chance to acquire the critical skills that will enable them to follow lectures with ease and gain the confidence to ask questions from their teachers, before their rigorous, grade-oriented classes begin. Emphasis on the creative arts and sports as well as for holistic development of the students is a unique feature of this program.
Highlighting the unique aspects of IIT Mandi’s curriculum, Dr. Pradeep Parameswaran, Dean (Academics), IIT Mandi, said,
“An important aspect of the curriculum is the integration of innovation and design into the learning process. This is achieved through a model of learning by doing, which is built into the curriculum. At IIT Mandi, the students are exposed to a broad range of knowledge and skills that will enable them to perform well in tomorrow’s increasingly complex and inter-dependent world.”
The B.Tech. programme being offered by the institute has several additional features including Minor program, B.Tech. Honors, among others. The Minor program will help students in gaining expertise in areas like Management, Intelligent Systems, Applied Physics, and German language, outside the major course discipline. Students can increase their credit score by opting B.Tech. Honors. The Institute has been ranked #7 in the ‘Centrally Funded Institutions’ category of ARIIA 2020. IIT Mandi Catalyst, the first Technology Business Incubator in Himachal Pradesh, has helped over 75 startups since 2017. There is a great opportunity for the students to experience entrepreneurial culture.
